Tripod-adapter



R. KROEDEL. TRIPOD ADAPTER. APPLICATION FILED FEB. 12. I9I9.

1,357,639, Patented Nov. 2, 1920.

INVENTOR. Rpberi Evade ATTORZYH? that the weight of the camera unirsn STATES ROBERT .KROEDEL, OF

CG'MPAN'L'Z, OF ROCHESTER, NEW' YURI E,

RGCEESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TD EASTMAN KODAK a con'rona'rron on NEW YORK.

TRIPOD-ADAPTER.

Application filed February To u/Z' 1. 71021! J2 may concmm:

Be it known that 1, ROBERT Knononn, a citizen of the United States of America, re siding at Rochester, in the county of Menroe and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ti'ipodAdapters, of which the following is a full. clear, and exact specification.

This invention relates to photography, and more particularly to an adapter used for fastening a camera containing no builtin tripod nut to tripod or other camera support. The principal object of my invention is to provide an attachment which will allow the owner of such a camera to use it for a stand camera when desired, by attaching my device, which is simple in construction, light and compact. I further provide an adapter which may be left on either the camera, or the tripod or desired, so that it need not be carried 1n the pocket when not in use. I further provide an adapter in which the construction is such tends to cause the adapter to hold more firmly, instead of to weaken the spring action as in some other types of adapters.

To these and to other ends this invention consists in improvements and combination of parts as will be hereinafter described, the novel features being pointed out in the claims at the end of the specification.

In the drawings, in which like characters designate the same parts throughout:

Figure 1, is a perspective of my adapter fastened to a box camera.

Fig. 2, is an end view of the adapter.

Fig. 3, is an enlarged spective of one of Fig. 1, is a half adapter, showing and having a box camera, section and partially in elevation, thereto.

Fig. 5, is a plan view of my adapter. A number of types of adapters havebeen designed for fasteningcameras to supports, some being attached by springs spanning the camera body, and some fastening to either the front board or bed. In most types the attachments were open to the objection that the steadiness of the camera depended largely upon the strength of the spring. In my adapter the weight of the camera body section through my tripod it mounted on a tripod shown partly in affixed Specification of Letters Patent.

other support, as.

fragmentary per the camera engaging arms,

Patented Nov. 2, 1920.

12, 1919. Serial No. 276,638.

is held in such a way. that the spring is in no way weakened by supporting the camera body, the tripod taking the weight of the camera instead of the spring.

My tripod socket plate, or tripod adapter as I prefer to call it, consists of a metal plate or strip 1, formed up at one end to prov dc supporting arms 2, 2 and formed at the opposite end to form engaging arms 3, 3. Between these end portions there is a base 4 supporting a tripod socket 5, the base t also acting as contacting surface with a tripod head. Between this base t and the engaging arms 3, 3 there is a raised portion 6, which isspaced from the engaging arms 3, 3 a sufiicient distance to allow clearance; the camera does not rest on this raised portion. The base 4.- may be made flat, as shown in Fig. 1, but I prefer to make itslightly concave 4:, as best illustrated in Fig. 4, since this form has numerous advantages, which will be hereinafter described. The supporting arms 2, 2 are relatively narrow, the recess 7 being made to relieve the long flat edge which would otherwise result from forming up the metal strip 1, since two contacting surfaces long one. This is not essential however. and a single wide supporting arm may be used. The engaging arms 3, 3 are preferably shaped like wedges or knife blades, as shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 5. The edge of the arm 3 is rounded so that only a small flat tened portion 8 enters a slot first, and is wedged tightly in the slot by the wider and thicker metal 9 at the rear of the arm 3. Between the engaging arms 3 and the supporting arms 2' there is a spring tension formed in the metal strip 1, tending to force the supporting arms 2 upwardly, when the engaging arms are inserted into a slot in a camera in operative position. In Figs. 1 and t I show my adapter fastened to'a well known type of her: camera, 10, whichconsists of sides 11, and a front board 12. The front boardis centrally apertured at 13 for the admission of light to the lens and has two finder lens apertures 14:. Four screws 15 hold this front board to the camera body only such parts as I have described pertain to the use of my inventlon. T o fasten the adapter, enter ed es 8 of the en gaging arms 3 into the slot 1% between front board 12 and the sides 11 on the vertical or are preferable to one horizontal side, as desired, slightly spring down the supporting arms 2, 2 and force the arms 3 in until the thicker and wider part 9 wedges the arms tightly in slot 17. The supporting arms 2 will be spring pressed tightly against the camera side ll. In Fig. 4 the dotted lines 2 show the normal posi tion of the supporting arms relative to the engaging arms 3 when not in position on a camera. in Fig. i it should also be noted that as the adapter supportstie camera from a position forward of the central line of the camera, the weight of the camera presses against the supporting legs 2 of the adapter, and that no stress is put on which tends to weaken the spring between the ends 2 and 53, of the adapter. These features make a substantial and firm tripod socket attachment.

Referring to Fig. 4C, a standard type of tripod 20 is illustrated, with legs 21, head 22, and screw 23.

forms two slightly resilient bearing surfaces, 18 and 19 so that close contact with the tripod head 22 is assured. This construction also prevents the adapter from riding up on any irregularity which might occur on the face of the tripod head or in a flat metal base, as at 4, Fig. l, or upon the bottom of the tripod nut 5, if it should be fastened so as to project below, instead of to be flush with the bottom of the base i. In either case the necessary firmness would not be obtained.

Still another feature of the concave base 4 is thatit provides an effectual means for tightening the camera to the adapter and at the same time tightening the adapter upon the tripod. I can be seen from Fig. 4 that as the tripod socket 5 is tightened on the screw 23 of the tripod, the metal base 4 will tend to flatten as points 18 and 19 are brought into contact with the tripod head 22. This thrusts up on the supporting arms 2, 2 and engaging arms 3, 3, thereby grasping the camera more firmly. At the same time the spring action of base 4 tends to bind the screw 23 more firmly into the nut 5. This double tightening action greatly increases the firmness and steadiness of the camera. 7 5

- By providing an attachment which can be securely fastened to both the camera and tripod, I have produced an adapter which will hold a camera with sufiicient firmness to be practical. It may be left for con venience on either the camera or the tripod, soit is not necessary to carry an extra part. It is understood that any form of. camera 7 When the adapter is screwed on the tripod the concave surface el stand or holder may be used which has a screw for fastening to a tripod nut.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1.111 combination with a camera having a slot in one side near the bottom thereof, a tripod adapter having a base with a screw socket, one edge or the base bent to form a flange lying substantially parallel to the base and tapered so that it can be forced into the slot, the other end of the base bent to form a flange that will be forced by the resiliency of the base into contact with the bottom of the camer when the tapered flange is engaged in the slot.

2. An adapter made of resilient sheet 7 metal and comprising a base turned up at each end to form shoulders adapted to bear against a tripod head, one turned up end having an overhanging sharpened flange, and the other turned up end having a straight upper edge that will be forced against the bottom of a camera by the resilient action of the adapter when the sharpened edge is engaged in a slot in the side of the camera, the base being concave downwardly and having a central screw socket.

A'tripod adapter having a resilient base that is concave on, its lower surface and provided with a screw socket, one end of the base being upturned to form a flange adapted to contact the bodyof a camera,the base at this point forming ashoulder, the other end of carrying means to engage a camera and hold the adapter thereto, the base at the upturned portion constituting a second shoulder, the two shoulders, when the adapter is screwed upon a tripod head, being adapted to engage such head and be thus sprung upwardly to increase the frictional engagement between the screw members.

4. In an adapter for securing a camera to a tripod, the combination of a concave plate having bent up ends, a tripod socket between the two ends, one bent contact with the camera body, the-other end having an engaging portion insertible into the camera, said concave base and bent up ends forming shouldersadapted to contact with the'tripodhead, whereby both the camera and the tripod will tend to be secured more tightly to the adapter a s'the socket isscrew'ed to the tripod.

Signed at Rochester, day of February, 1919.

ROBERTv KROEDEL.

the base being upturned and N ewYork, this 10th.

up end adapted to 

